Author: Ayun Halliday
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade
Publication Date: December 26, 2012
ISBN-13: 978-0375865909
216 pp.
ARC provided by publisher
Peanut by Ayun Halliday is a graphic novel about a girl transferring to a new high school and who decides to fake a peanut allergy.
Why? Because she's the new girl. Again. And a lie gives Sadie a chance to create a persona that fits in. Really, the lie could have been anything, but Sadie thought a peanut allergy would be easy enough to fake. Except it's not.
Sadie uses the lie as an opening to talk to others at her new school and finds a group of friends, including cute boy Zoo. She's fitting in and getting comfortable. And that's when the problems start.
Her friends are more vigilant about protecting her from her allergy than she is and the school's nurse hounds her for medical information. Sadie wants to come clean, but she's afraid she'll lose everything.
Peanut is a funny, savvy look at the extremes teens go to when they're unsure of themselves. The artwork by Paul Hoppe is clean and contemporary. The pop of color in Sadie's clothes in the otherwise black & white illustrations is a nice touch visually, as well as thematically, as it literally sets her apart.
The dialog is realistic for teens, which means there are insults and bad language.
I'd recommend Peanut to readers who enjoyed Smile by Raina Telgemeier or Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol.
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